The present invention relates to an improved mounting medium that can be used in the preparation of slides for investigation by microscopy techniques.
Generally, in microscopy, a slide of a material or sample to be investigated is prepared by putting said sample or material onto a (bottom) slide and then covering said sample with a (top) cover. Generally, for light microscopy or similar techniques, slides and covers of glass or another suitable transparent materials are used.
Also, in the preparation of such slides, the cover glass is usually adhered to/fixated onto the bottom slide. This “mounting” assures that the sample and the cover glass stay in place on the bottom slide, which eases handling, storage and/or transportation of the slides. Also, such mounting assures that the slides are preserved for prolonged periods of time—i.e. for up to five years or more—without substantial deterioration of the sample or material.
Conventional mounting media usually comprise a resin, such as an acrylate resin, in an aromatic hydrocarbon such as xylene or toluene as organic solvent. However, in practice, it is often found that the conventional mounting media—and in particular the acrylate resin(s) present therein—interfere and/or react with the organic solvent mixture used for washing the slide, resulting in the formation of a turbid layer on the slide and/or leading to other undesired effects which may detract from quality of the slide obtained and/or from the microscopic examination thereof. It has been found that these problems may in particular occur when the last washing step(s) has (have) been carried out with (a mixture of) saturated hydrocarbons, such as ULTRACLEAR®, a mixture of nonanes, decanes, undecanes and dodecanes marketed by Mallinokrodt Baker B.V., Deventer, Netherlands.